MCH is a hypothalamus-derived hormone known to have an appetite increasing action. Furthermore, it has been reported that MCH knockout mouse behaves normally but shows a significantly decreased food intake amount and a lighter body weight as compared to normal mouse (Nature, vol. 396, page 670, 1998). Furthermore, MCH receptor-1-deficient mice have been reported to show a lean phenotype (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, vol. 99, page 3240, 2002). Therefrom MCH receptor (particularly MCH receptor 1) antagonists are expected to be superior appetite suppressants or anti-obesity agents.
As compounds having a MCH receptor antagonistic action, the following compounds are known.    1) WO2007/029847 (patent document 1) discloses a pyridone derivative represented by the formula:
wherein    R1 and R2 are the same or different and each is a hydrogen atom, a lower alkyl group optionally having substituent(s) or a lower cycloalkyl group optionally having substituent(s), or R1 and R2 form, together with the nitrogen atom bonded thereto, an aliphatic nitrogen-containing heterocycle optionally having substituent(s),    X1, X2 and X3 are the same or different and each is a methine group optionally having substituent(s) or a nitrogen atom, provided that X1, X2 and X3 are not simultaneously nitrogen atoms,    Y1 is a single bond, —O—, —NR—, —S—, —SO— or —SO2—,    Y2 is a lower alkylene group optionally having substituent(s), a lower alkenylene group optionally having substituent(s) or a lower cycloalkylene group optionally having substituent(s),    Y3 is a single bond, —O—, —NR—, —S—, —SO— or —SO2—,    each R is independently a hydrogen atom or a lower alkyl group optionally having substituent(s),    W1, W2, W3 and W4 are the same or different and each is a single bond, a methylene group optionally having substituent(s) or —O—, provided that continuous two or more of W1, W2, W3 and W4are not simultaneously —O—,    L is a single bond, a methylene group optionally having substituent(s) or an ethylene group optionally having substituent(s), and L optionally forms, together with Z2, R1 and the nitrogen atom bonded to R2, an aliphatic nitrogen-containing heterocycle optionally having substituent(s),    Z1 and Z2 are the same or different, and each is a single bond, a C1-4 alkylene group optionally having substituent(s) or —O—,    Ar1 is an aromatic carbocyclic group optionally having substituent(s) or an aromatic heterocyclic group optionally having substituent(s), and    Ar2 is a divalent and bicyclic aromatic carbocyclic group optionally having substituent(s) or a divalent and bicyclic aromatic heterocyclic group optionally having substituent(s), or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.    2) WO01/82925 (patent document 2) discloses a compound represented by the formula:
wherein    Ar1 is a cyclic group optionally having substituent(s);    X and Y are the same or different and each is a spacer with a main chain having an atom number of 1 to 6;    Ar is a condensed polycyclic aromatic ring optionally having substituent(s);    R1 and R2 are the same or different and each is a hydrogen atom or a hydrocarbon group optionally having substituent(s), R1 and R2 may form, together with the adjacent nitrogen atom, a nitrogen-containing heterocycle optionally having substituent(s), R2 may form, together with the adjacent nitrogen atom and Y, a nitrogen-containing heterocycle optionally having substituent(s), or R2 may form, together with the adjacent nitrogen atom, Y and Ar, a nitrogen-containing fused ring optionally having substituent(s),or a salt thereof.    3) WO2006/118320 (patent document 3) discloses a compound represented by the formula:
wherein    Ar is an optionally substituted ring;    A is a spacer with a main chain having an atom number of 1 to 4;    B is a bond, a C1-10 alkylene group or an oxygen atom;    R3 and R5 are each independently a hydrogen atom or a substituent;    R4 is an optionally substituted cyclic group or an optionally substituted C1-10 alkyl group;    R1 and R2 are each independently a hydrogen atom or a substituent, R1 is bonded to R2 or B to form an optionally substituted nitrogen-containing heterocycle, or R1 is bonded to Ar to form an optionally substituted nitrogen-containing fused heterocycle,or a salt thereof.    4) WO2011/130086 (patent, document 5) and WO2011/127643 (patent document 6) disclose a compound represented by the formula:
wherein    R1 and R2 are each independently selected from the group consisting of halogen, hydrogen, —OH, C1-C6 alkyl, —OC1-C6 alkyl, —O-halogen-substituted C1-C6 alkyl and halogen-substituted C1-C6 alkyl;    W is —N— or —CH—;    Q is —O—, —NH— or —C—, or forms heteroaryl together with R4, aromatic ring B and R3;    R3 is halogen, hydrogen, —OC1-C6 alkyl, C1-C6 alkyl, —O-halogen substituted C1-C6 alkyl, halogen-substituted C1-C6 alkyl, cyano, SO2C1-C6 alkyl or forms a heteroaryl ring together with aromatic ring B, Q and R4;    R4 is hydrogen, oxo, C1-C6 alkyl, halogen-substituted C1-C6 alkyl or forms heteroaryl together with aromatic ring B, R3 and Q, or forms C3-C6 cycloalkyl together with R5;    R5, R6 and R7 are each independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C1-C6 alkyl, halogen-substituted C1-C6 alkyl, C3-C6 cycloalkyl, halogen-substituted C3-C6 cycloalkyl, C1-C6 alkyl C3-C6 cycloalkyl, —OH, C1-C6 alkyl-OH and —OC1-C6 alkyl, or R5 forms oxo group or C3-C6 cycloalkyl together with R6, or R5 forms C3-C6 cycloalkyl together with R4, and at least one of R5, R6 and R7 is not hydrogen, and    n is 1-3,or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.
On the other hand, as a p38 MAP kinase modulator, the following compound is known.    5) WO2005/018557 (patent document 4) discloses a compound represented by the formula:
wherein    R1 is H, halogen or the like,    R2 is optionally substituted arylalkoxy, optionally substituted heteroarylalkyl or the like,    R3 is H, halogen or the like,    R4 is H or optionally substituted alkyl, and    R5 is aryl optionally substituted by substituent(s) such as C3-C7 cycloalkyl, alkoxyalkyl and the like, and the likeor a pharmaceutically acceptable salt thereof.